Kia Ora,

 

Thank you for your query which has been shared with the Digital Safety and
Investigations group within the Department of Internal
Affairs. The Digital Safety and Investigations group works with
international and domestic agencies to help combat online harm in relation
to online child sexual exploitation, violent extremist content and
unsolicited commercial electronic messages.  

Regarding your query relating to Roblox and content related to
the Christchurch Mosque attacks, this falls within the responsibility of
the Digital Messaging and Violent Extremism team.  

User‑generated platforms such as Roblox can host inappropriate or harmful
content, including objectionable material that breaches [1]New Zealand
law or the companies community standards. This risk is not unique to
Roblox and applies to all large platforms that enable users to create and
share content at scale. 

Access to Roblox games 

For most Roblox games, anyone can join if: 

o They have the games unique URL; and 

o They have a Roblox account; and  

o The game is not full.  

However, some games which host recreations may be harder to access due to
restrictions such as: 

o Private servers 

o Access limited to friends or specific Roblox groups 

o Paid access 

o Games that are unpublished in Roblox Studio (the URL exists but the
game is unplayable) 

o Account or age restrictions 

o Roblox game mods/maps hosted by platforms not directly associated to
Roblox. Roblox has no power over such platforms, as
they operate independently. An example is the darkblox.net link you
supplied, which is a platform that hosts content usually not allowed
by Roblox and other games. These types of platforms are typically
moderated less than official platforms. 

Where these restrictions apply, our investigators are generally unable to
independently triage or verify whether the content is illegal even if
referred. 

Prior awareness 

We share concerns about harmful or potentially illegal content on online
gaming platforms, including Roblox. Our investigators do not
proactively monitor individual games or user‑generated content, but become
aware of specific material through public reports, referrals from partner
agencies, or information provided by platforms themselves. Further
information is available in the DVE Transparency Reports: [2]Countering
Violent Extremism Transparency reports - dia.govt.nz 

Relationship with platforms 

We maintain working relationships with a range of online platforms,
including Roblox. These relationships allow investigators to engage
constructively where potentially objectionable material is identified.
While platforms are responsible for moderating their services in line with
their own terms of service and applicable laws, our investigators may
engage with them where content appears to breach New Zealand law.  

Our engagement with Roblox regarding objectionable material has
historically been positive and responsive. 

Government intervention 

Keeping children safe online is a shared responsibility involving parents
and caregivers, platforms, schools, and government. Platforms have primary
responsibility to design and moderate services to minimise harm,
particularly where children are a significant user group.  

The Education and Workforce Committee recently released their [3]final
report regarding the Inquiry into the harm young New
Zealanders encounter online, and the roles that Government, business, and
society should play in addressing those harms. The inquiry sought to
examine the harm young New Zealanders encounter online
and identify proportionate, actionable interventions to address those
harms.  

Most social media companies provide tools which can be utilised by parents
and guardians to protect young people on their platforms. Roblox offers a
variety of parental controls to help you support your child’s experience
on the platform. These enable parents and caregivers to control the type
of content their child has access to, how much money they can spend, and
how much time they are allowed to spend on Roblox each day. You can find
more information on how to utilise Roblox’s parental controls
here: corp.roblox.com/safety.  

Removal of content 

Where content may be objectionable under New Zealand law, it may be
referred to the Office of Film and Literature Classification or raised
with the platform under its terms of service. If the content meets the
definition of objectionable, then investigators will engage with the
platform either using an informal or formal take-down notice. Content
hosted overseas presents jurisdictional challenges, and outcomes depend on
applicable international legal and cooperation frameworks. 

AI moderation 

The Department closely follows the use of AI in moderation. However, it
cannot require private companies to change their moderation policies or
practices.  

Additional notes 

Thank you for raising your concerns. If you encounter URLs that
may contain objectionable material in the future, please report it
using our
webform: [4]https://www.dia.govt.nz/Digital-Safety-R...

We can confirm that the two URLs you provided as leading to objectionable
material are not hosted on the platform Roblox, however one has been
referred internally for further investigation, and one has
already been taken down.  

 

 

Ngā mihi

 

Jess

Senior Advisor, Ministerial and Official Correspondence

Policy & Te Tiriti Branch
Department of Internal Affairs Te Tari Taiwhenua 
45 Pipitea Street | PO Box 805, Wellington 6140, New Zealand
| [5]www.dia.govt.nz 

 

 

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